2.5 c. King Arthur flour unbleached all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

1 c. softened butter

1 c. granulated sugar

1 c. light brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

3 c. rolled or steel cut oats

1 c. dried cranberries or your favorite dried fruit like raisins, apricots or cherries

1 c. milk or white chocolate chips, optional

1 c. chopped walnuts, optional

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Sift together flour, baking soda and salt.

In a mixing bowl, beat butter, sugars, eggs and pure vanilla extract until smooth.

Add dry mixture to wet ingredients. Blend well. Add raw oats. Stir until well blended.  Stir in cranberries, chips and dried fruit and nuts. With your hands, roll cookie dough into 1-inch balls.  Place 2″ apart on greased cookie sheet. Bake for 12 minutes. Let stand for 1 minute.

Tip: With most cookies, do not cook them all the way through. Cookies will continue to harden once they are taken out of the oven. This is the secret to the perfect cookie!